Knox Wins Three Awards in One Year, Makes School History

Knox Wins Three Awards in One Year, Makes School History

Knox Wins Three Awards in One Year, Makes School History2016-05-092016-09-26/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Header-COHPA.pngUCF College of Health and Public Affairshttps://www.cohpa.ucf.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/claire_knox_web.jpg200px200px

She’s an assistant professor, a program director and an advocate for sustainability. But now Claire Knox can call herself something else – a triple threat.

Knox (right) is the 2015-16 recipient of three UCF awards — the Research Incentive Award, the Teaching Incentive Program Award and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award — and is the first person from the School of Public Administration to win all three awards in one year.

She is also the second person from the College of Health and Public Affairs to achieve this, the first being Professor Jennifer Kent-Walsh from the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders.

Both the RIA and TIP awards are given by the Office of Faculty Excellence for outstanding achievements in research and teaching, respectively. The SoTL award is given by the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning for outstanding achievements in research and scholarly activities that focus on the effectiveness of teaching methods.

Knox’s interdisciplinary research focuses on the narratives and language underlying environmental and emergency management plans and policies, which can explain contradictions affecting policy change and implementation outcomes. Her secondary focus applies Habermas’ Critical theory to challenges facing public administrators and policy makers.

As a former practitioner, Knox focuses her teaching philosophy and SoTL research on the professionalization of the student. Specifically, incorporating real world opportunities for students to gain key knowledge, skills, and abilities needed in the evolving fields of emergency management and public administration.

Knox isn’t the only faculty member from SPA to win an award this year. Assistant Professor Qian Hu is also a recipient of the 2015-16 RIA and TIP awards and Director Naim Kapucu is a recipient of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award.